Carmel Art Festival and plein air painting.....

Plein air painting or painting on location has become a "thing" for landscape artists.  All the talk, the term plein air, has trickled down to the masses.  Competitions, workshops and so on have reinvented the basic idea of plein air painting.  With rare exception until recently the process of painting on location was to learn, create studies, explore ideas, to then take into the studio for a work of art that would eventually find it's way to the gallery wall and then on to a collectors home.  It was a long journey that took time and thought.  

With the last 20 year or so, reinvention of the plein air movement, artists, organizations and collectors have put on the pressure to create finished, super paintings.  With all the "painting process plates" of value, composition, design, color, edges etc. in the air, it's tough in the field not to drop one or two.  For the beginner it's almost impossible.  With that pressure the simple pleasure of painting on location can be lost.  

Admittedly I enjoy the pressure of a plein air competition.  It forces me to finish each painting,  knowing I will be judged by the formal juror and all the other artists.  

During last years event in Carmel I made an effort to paint scenes that offer the collectors a nice selection of local views with the mood of the day, highlighted.  Below is an example of catching the incoming fog bank off the ocean as it drifts up the rural Carmel Valley.  

Carmel is a tough plein air event because you never know what the day will bring as far as the light.  It's not unusual to wake up the morning, a thick layer of fog hanging over the trees.  Tempting as it is to tuck down in the warm blankets, I jump up and dash off to paint.  I didn't mention yet and some may not know, time is fleeting.  In this event we have 2 days to finish as many paintings as possible.  Most artists finish at least 4, often as many as 6 or 7.  

Here is one morning set up of all my gear and the view I picked to work with.  

At this point the painting is pretty well figured out and nearly finished.  It's time to move on to the next location and start again.  

Talk about a change in the light!  Just a little while longer and bright sparkling light is bouncing off the sand and sea.   While painting on location it's a good idea to at least have a guess where the light is heading and the weather in general for the day.  This way you can  paint where the light is headed, not what you see when you first set up.  Then you have a bit more time to paint the scene before it's entirely gone.  Again, this is very tough for the artist first starting to paint on location, unexpected clouds can ruin their experience.  My advice to them would be to take that sunlit canvas off the easel put up a blank one and create a new study of the cloudy day.  Think of the learning possibilities, not the fact that your original scene is gone with the light.  

At the end of a plein air competition all the artists frame and hang their paintings.   You can see two of the paintings that you saw in process, framed and on the wall in this photo.  

If you decide to venture out painting, give yourself the freedom to explore, enjoy and paint with pleasure.  Sir Winston Churchill, wrote a lovely little book "Painting As a Pass Time", on the joys of plein air painting, saying eloquently what we all feel struggling out of doors.  

"Along the Pacific Coast" ©

Over the last few weeks I painted twice in the area of Carmel, California.  Part of that time was during the Carmel Art Festival, which hosts a plein air competition for four days.  60 artists have two days to paint and two days for the judging, auction and final show.  It's not an event for sissy's.  While painting, I plowed though rain, fog, wind and a dog using my back pack for a fire hydrant.  One time while painting my water bottle started whistling in the wind and I knew it was more then just a little windy.  It's such a beautiful area, the light shifting, clouds drifting that you really don't care about the adverse conditions.  Every moment is a surprise, as the ocean changes from dull gray to brilliant turquoise.  

Oil on Canvas, 18" X 24"

"Carmel Valley Afternoon", #CarmelArtFestival #carmelvalleyoilpainting

Last week I was in the area of Carmel-By-The-Sea painting in the annual plein air event.  About 60  artists participate from all over the country.  Our canvases are stamped on Wednesday night and we have until 8pm on Friday night to paint, paint, paint.  The painting on my easel is almost done.  It's a 16" X 12" canvas,  that sold during the silent auction Saturday.  I thought since the weather was so nice not too many artists would venture into the Carmel Valley to paint.  Garland Park is the go to spot when fog has blown into town or when you want to paint the unusual view on a sunny day.  Other the a few hikers I was all alone, thinking how lucky I was to be painting such a beautiful spot.  

While I was painting on the deck for viewing the Pebble Beach Lone Cypress every 20 min. or so a tour bus would arrive, unloading people from around the world to view the tree.  My photo with my painting will be all over China, Japan and India.  Some people even took my paint brush and pretended to paint on my canvas for photographs.  It was wild.  I didn't paint the actual Lone Cypress because it is copyrighted by the Pebble Beach Corporation, so I painted looking north along the coast from the deck.  

On Friday night all of the artists hung their 2 favorite paintings under the white tents on the panel with their names.  If your paintings sold on Saturday you were allowed to hang 2 more on Sunday.  I was a lucky lady and was able to hang 2 new paintings on Sunday. 

Here is the finished painting of "Carmel Valley Afternoon",  hanging on my wall.  You can see that all of the artists must bring frames for their work, frame up the wet painting and hang the paintings on their walls quickly.   

Pretty typical view at Point Lobos.  We were encouraged to paint up and down the coast but Point Lobos offered such great views there really was no need to hunt around for another painting spot.  

Here is my whole wall on Saturday.   The bottom painting was painted at Cypress Cove, Point Lobos.  Both paintings sold, so Sunday I hung new work and sold more.  

After the quick draw all of the artists set up their easels in the park and offered the painting for sale by silent bid.  Any artist that was awarded a ribbon was expected to participate in the quick draw.  Unfortunately I didn't get one, so I was sidelined for the quick draw.  My goal next year is to break the ribbon barrier and earn one because I love painting in quick draws.  

Heading home down Highway One, the coastal views were stunning. I arrived home, happy, tired and ready for the next event.  I'll be teaching a workshop in Lake Arrowhead the weekend of May 31, so now I am preparing and so excited to meet all the artists and teach them everything I know.  Well, maybe not everything but all I can in 2 days.  

"Carmel Sands" ©

The last week painting in Monterey County, specifically Carmel for the art festival we had rain, sun, wind and fog.  This painting was done on the main beach, just a bit up from the ocean in the white sand dunes.  Unknowingly I had set up to paint within the space of a beach volley ball court, at the time there wasn't another soul around.  Slowly as the minutes ticked by nets were erected,  balls bounced past my easel and I became increasing aware of being in the wrong spot for a painting.  Finally, when I was at this point of the process,  a very nice guy asked me when my painting would be done.   OK, I got the hint and packed up.  I promise to post more on the festival tomorrow.  

Oil on linen,  14" X 11"

"Central Coast Eucalyptus Trees" ©

Next week is the 20th Annual Art Festival and I was lucky to be included in the roster of artists.  I have been thinking about painting in the Carmel - Monterey Bay- Big Sur area, the different views depending on the weather and adapting to the light that is unique to the area, while painting this little scene that is near Cambria, CA.   For artists I would love to share a book I have been reading, "Traditional Oil Painting", by Virgil Elliott.  If you can only find time to read the introduction, it's worth it.  Elliot writes about all of the truths I have come to learn about the process of painting in such an inspirational way I wish I could copy the pages and send them to every artists I know.  This is a reference book for the bookcase that I will pick up many, many times.  

Oil on Canvas,  14" X 18"